Milk (DVD, 2009)

By Karl J. Paloucek of the Channel Guide Store

Film is no substitute for history, but the right film can take you back to a bygone era and present something of its zeitgeist, an idea of what it was like to be present at a moment of historic change. It also can serve as a benchmark to show how far we’ve come in the intervening years, and how far-reaching singular events in history can be. Academy Award-nominated "Milk" is such a film, and one that’s especially successful.

Told mostly in flashback, Milk traces the political and private life of Harvey Milk (Sean Penn), America’s first openly gay elected public official, from the time of his initial arrival in San Francisco at roughly age 40 to his slaying at the hands of conservative political rival Dan White (Josh Brolin) eight years later. In between, Milk went from being a locally concerned citizen who galvanized the gay residents of San Francisco’s Castro district to becoming city supervisor, and the most visible opponent of Proposition 6, a proposed law that called for the mandatory dismissal of all gay teachers and public school employees who supported gay rights.

Milk is a smartly written, carefully presented biopic with a number of laudable supporting performances, in particular Emile Hirsch as Cleve Jones — one of Milk’s earliest and most loyal supporters — and Brolin as the intense, conflicted White. More remarkable than the film itself is Penn’s portrayal of Milk. He disappears completely into the role, as Penn consistently does, picking up another Academy nod in the process. But instead of overshadowing the film, his performance is rather well integrated and steadily pulls the narrative along to its final, operatic conclusion.

When "Brokeback Mountain" finally brought gay oppression center stage in the mainstream popular culture, it was only a matter of time before the story of Harvey Milk and everything he did to encourage tolerance in the world would be expressed onscreen. As a film, Milk may not be the greatest film of 2008, but its importance goes a bit beyond that. It’s a paean to Milk’s work and his memory. Even as the struggle for widespread social acceptance of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender/transsexual community continues, Milk serves as a poignant benchmark of the progress made since, but with the recent struggles over Proposition 8, it’s also an echo — a reminder of the distance that yet remains.

Sean Penn won the 2009 Oscar for best actor. This movie is based on the life of Harvey Milk. In 1977, he was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, becoming the first openly gay man to be voted into public office in America. His victory was not just a victory for gay rights; he forged coalitions across the political spectrum. This is rated R for violence and sexual content.

This movie is perhaps the most powerful biopic I have ever seen. My respect for Sean Penn as an actor was already very strong. In this film, however, he is masterful. He so completely becomes Harvey Milk that you forget you are watching an actor in a role. James Franco also delivers a beutifully balanced performance, played with thoughtful intensity. The end of the movie left me finding it very difficult to even breathe. While this is the story of an openly gay man, the human dramas presented are certainly universal.

I knew this movie would be good, because although Sean Penn and myself are miles apart on our respective political views, I have nothing but respect for his acting talent. I thought he did a great job. I probably don't agree with the title characters' politics as well but repect his actions, and certainly he did not recieve the unjust ending to his life that happened. Josh Brolin did a great job as well, and I enjoy the acting talents of Emile Hirsch albeit he had a small role, and was camouflaged in his appearance. Sad, but good story, and a good tribute to Harvey Milk!

I have seen 2 Documentaries about Harvey Milk first which made me jump at the chance to get the Movie. I think that the Screenplay and the editing and the direction was horrible. The story had so many interesting turns and events that make the story an great tragedy and I felt like it was more a hate Repulicans, Gay soft pron with no attention to the greatness of the issue. I was bummed, it makes me want to write a better script. It is a better story than they told. Penn was good, I'll give him that, but one man can't carry a movie if the writting is bad. Bummer